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Blog Tour: Beard in Hiding by Penny Reid (with Excerpt)

November 29, 2021 Leave a Comment

Beard in Hiding, the USA Today bestselling companion novel to the Winston Brothers and Solving for Pies series is LIVE! Penny Reid delivers a heartfelt romantic comedy about two lost souls who find love in the most unexpected way.

Propositioning the Iron Wraiths’ money man seemed like a good idea at the time…

Diane Donner—recently divorced pillar of polite society—is craving danger. She’s tired of playing it safe and she knows just the sexy criminal motorcycle man to proposition for a good time. Problem is, she doesn’t actually know his name.

Jason “Repo” Doe never takes risks. So when the queen of local commerce walks into his club, looking to get risky and frisky, Jason knows the smartest thing to do is save himself a headache while saving the new divorcee from her worst impulses.

But then one thing leads to another, and the memory of just-one-night doesn’t feel like enough.

Theirs is a story with no future, because how can a dangerous criminal win (and keep) a queen?

‘Beard In Hiding’ is book #4.5 in the Winston Brothers series, is a full length contemporary romantic comedy about two lost souls in their 40s, and is a companion novel to the Winston Brothers and Solving for Pie series.

If you want to get the full immersive Green Valley world experience, I recommend reading ‘Truth or Beard,’ ‘Beard Science,’ ‘Engagement and Espionage,’ and ‘Marriage and Murder’ beforehand. ‘Beard In Hiding’ contains spoilers for these four books (in specific).

Grab your copy TODAY!

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3snwR4z

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/2VU86B5

Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/3j1f1jJ

Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/2TDE7fI

Amazon Print: https://amzn.to/3cJW2rb

AppleBooks: https://apple.co/3i6y4tI

Nook: https://bit.ly/3781FMQ

Kobo: https://bit.ly/3l6JQ9q

Google Play: https://bit.ly/2URVrOW

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3xa6Ma2

Excerpt

“Just say it, Diane.”

“Fine.” She lifted her chin. “I want someone to court me.”

And there it was. I continued staring at her, counting the seconds as they ticked by. Why she couldn’t just say, I don’t want you, you’re not good enough for me, I had no idea. Did she think I needed to be let down gently?

Well, now. That would be a first.

“I want dinners and flowers,” she went on. “And picnics and romantic gestures. I don’t want to constantly be making excuses for someone, for their lack of ability or skill or generosity.”

I deadened the needlingly ache behind my ribcage, suffocated thoughts and desires long abandoned. “Diane. You don’t need to say anything else.”

“I don’t?” Her features brightened and she approached the arm of the couch. “You understand what I mean?”

“Yes. You mean you don’t want me.” And that was fine, and it made sense, and I wasn’t going to dwell on it, and now I needed to go.

“What?” she snapped, her head tilting to the side like she needed to inspect me from a different angle. “No! No, you irritating man. Did I say that? That’s not at all what I’m saying.”

“Then what do you mean?” I glanced over her head toward the room’s exit, impatient to leave. I didn’t belong here, and I’d rather be stranded outside in a snowstorm than accept any more of her charity.

“I mean, I want you.”

My eyes cut back to hers and as I waited for the but—because there was always a but—I ignored the tightness seizing my lungs, the hope.

When she kept on looking at me, as though expecting a reaction, I prompted, “But?”

“But nothing.” She placed her hands on her hips, her tone salty, impatient.

What? “There’s always a ‘but.’”

“Fine. Yes. Okay. There is a ‘but.’” Her eyes moved like she might roll them, but stopped when they reached the ceiling. “I want you. But . . . only if you want me the same way.”

I stared at her and that’s all I could do because I was so damn confused.

Meanwhile, she peaked at me, nibbling her bottom lip, looking so goddamn gorgeous in her little nighty.

“Do you . . . want me?” The uncertainty in her voice, the vulnerability, hit low in my stomach.

“Pardon?” I choked out because, was hers a real question? How could she not know how much I wanted her? Hadn’t I just kissed the hell out of her? Hadn’t her breast just filled my palm? Hadn’t I just literally said the words, I want you?

Her tongue flicked out to lick her lips and she stepped fully around the couch, her eyes huge. “I’ve been in a lonely, one-sided romance before. I don’t want that. I want something deep, something meaningful for both people involved. I’m not saying we have to get married. Lord knows, I’ve had enough of marriage to last a lifetime. I don’t think I’ll ever get married again. What I’m talking about is something real, authentic, passionate, but also—above all else—loving. Because what I’ve never had, what I’ve never known, is that.”

“I . . . don’t understand.”

Diane took a deep breath and then said loudly, “I want a relationship,” like the words were a painful confession and the only way she could speak it out loud was by shouting them.

I stared at her for a moment longer before finally asking, “With who?”

Her lips twitched. “With you.”

What? “With me.”

“Yes. But a real one, not just—and I can’t believe I’m saying this—not just sex.”

I barely heard a word she’d said, instead repeating, “With me,” again because the idea was absurd. A relationship with me? Is she crazy?

“Yes. With you. As I’ve said.”

“But . . . Why?”

“What do you mean why?” She frowned. It was severe. “Have you met you?”

About Penny Reid

Penny Reid is the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of the Winston Brothers and Knitting in the City series. She used to spend her days writing federal grant proposals as a biomedical researcher, but now she writes kissing books. Penny is an obsessive knitter and manages the #OwnVoices-focused mentorship incubator / publishing imprint, Smartypants Romance. She lives in Seattle Washington with her husband, three kids, and dog named Hazel.

Find Penny online

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How To Write Tiny Fictions or Flash Fiction: A Writing Craft Practice

November 22, 2021 Leave a Comment

Writing small 1-paragraph scenes is a great and fun way to flex your writing muscles without too much commitment. After all, one paragraph connected to a few other paragraphs create a larger story. If you can write something short with great emotion, it’s likely you can carry that into longer works too.

What I like to call “tiny fiction” is actually “flash fiction.” Flash fiction can range from a story of 5 words to 1,000 words. For me, I try to keep my tiny fiction to a paragraph or so.

And truly, it’s an opportunity to just practice writing.

Ideas for Flash Fiction:

describe the setting, whether you make it feel very cozy or very spooky
share a conversation between two people, arguing or flirting
unfold your biggest fear in as few words as possible
write the emotion you’re feeling personified
borrow your favorite line from a movie and tell its story

Read a few of my Tiny Fictions below!

1 Short Story | 3 Perspectives: “I’m Keeping a Promise to Myself”

While you can easily peruse books full of writing prompts, I like to collect writing ideas as I go through life. The lines and phrases come from overheard conversations, movies, books, or just a wisp of a thought from my own brain.

When I sit down with that phrase, I ask myself, “What’s the story here?” and I allow the curiosity to lead me. Sometimes what I write is no good at all, but most of the time, I end up loving the essence of the flash fiction.

My best tip for writing, other than sitting down and doing it…is putting your phone far enough away from yourself that you have to get up and walk to get it.

Do you enjoy reading flash fiction? Do you prefer writing it? What’s the best tiny fiction you’ve ever read?

Penny Reid: New Release ALERT – Beard in Hiding

November 16, 2021 Leave a Comment

Beard in Hiding, an all-new companion novel to the bestselling Winston Brothers and Solving for Pies series is LIVE! Penny Reid delivers a heartfelt romantic comedy about two lost souls who find love in the most unexpected way.

Propositioning the Iron Wraiths’ money man seemed like a good idea at the time…

But then one thing leads to another, and the memory of just-one-night doesn’t feel like enough.

Theirs is a story with no future, because how can a dangerous criminal win (and keep) a queen?

‘Beard In Hiding’ is book #4.5 in the Winston Brothers series, is a full-length contemporary romantic comedy about two lost souls in their 40s, and is a companion novel to the Winston Brothers and Solving for Pie series.